The house is on a small working farm with gorgeous views of the countryside and Mount Amiata, just outside of the city walls of Pienza. An easy 10 minute walk gets you in the center of town. Pienza was a great base for us with easy access to all of Tuscany.

Their website says the house is from the 15th century but everything looked new. Our room was clean and spacious with a private entrance and a roomy bathroom with a hair dryer and large tub. There was a TV and an honor bar refrigerator in the room but no phone. They also have a washing machine off the patio that is available for guest use. I’m not sure about a dryer.

Lucia apologizes for her English but she speaks and understands plenty, far better than our Italian. She wasn’t home when we arrived and her husband Maresco doesn’t speak much English but he’s got a nice smile and we got settled in just fine. The list of rules posted in the room sounded harsh so I was a little worried but Lucia was very sweet and dedicated to making your stay enjoyable. She works afternoons/evenings but they have maps, tourist information and excellent restaurant recommendations in the rooms.

One thing we’d never seen before was a charge for gas usage. When we checked in Maresco took us to the meter and wrote down the reading, then we signed the card. We weren’t charged anything because we didn’t turn on the heat so I don’t know how expensive it would be in cold weather.

Lucia served us a delicious breakfast (available between 8:30 and 10:30) with coffee. tea, juice, fresh pastries and breads, cheese or prosciutto, toast and a basket of jellies, honey and nutella. We chose to eat on the patio rather than our room.

We made our reservations through venere.com for 80 EU a night including breakfast. They have rooms and an apartment available. They also have their own website:
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A really good self-catering apartment for four just outside the town of Pienza (ten mins walk). Lucia, the owner, speaks English and was a delight to deal with. The property was perfectly situated, close enough we could go to town for a glass or wine or a meal in the evening but in a wonderful rural location on an olive farm. The area has loads to occupy visitors, close to Montalcino, Montepulciano and other pretty hill towns, and just an hour's drive from Siena. Would strongly recommend it.